Fallen
by Miraichaos
Summary: Multi-chapter fic. A walk across a bridge goes wrong, and now the team must deal with the loss. My first multi-chapter, tell me what you think. I realize the summary is bad, but I didn't want to spoil anything. T for death and possibility of alcohol.
1. Chapter 1

A/N: I'm trying for a multiple chapter fanfic. I seem to be getting worse as I go, but this idea came and I was bored, and there aren't many Scorpion fanfics. So, I decided why not. R&amp;R it helps. Tell me if I should continue the story or not, I don't want to continue if no one likes it. It's short, but each time I skip ahead or if I want to end with a cliffhanger I make a new chapter, so there's the story behind that. Enjoy :)

It shouldn't have played out this way. Those men shouldn't have been armed. They shouldn't have attacked. They shouldn't have even been there. If they hadn't been there, maybe he would still be alive.

They had been walking across the bridge downtown, it was sunset. Paige thought it was beautiful. Ralph was at her neighbor's house, so she wasn't worried about getting home any time soon. She, Walter, Happy, Toby and Sylvester were walking across the bridge. She made them all stop in the middle of it, wanting to see the sun go down. They were so busy looking at the water far below and the beautiful setting sun to see the group coming up behind them. They didn't know anyone was there until Paige felt the cold barrel of a gun against her head.

When Paige suddenly stiffened the whole team turned around, only to come face to face with a gang. One man had a gun on Paige's head. She turned slowly. One of the attackers, a tall one, stepped forward. "You got a couple pretty girls here. Do you girls want to have some fun?" Happy glared, but Paige didn't move. She flinched when the guy put the gun away. His sneer turned into a scowl. "NO ONE DENIES ME!" He roared. His gang jumped forward. Sylvester somehow grabbed the gun of one, and as soon as his attacker saw how bad he was with it, they bailed. Sylvester threw the gun in the water, too nervous to hold onto it. Toby punched his attacker in the face, and when they grabbed his neck, he did the snapping thing Walter had taught him. Soon the attacker dropped him and ran, nauseous to the high heavans. Happy simply beat up her attacker. Kneeing them in the stomach and punching their face. She then helped Paige, efficiently taking out her attacker.

Walter was struggling. The group leader had come after him, and was MUCH bigger. The leader could probably step on him like a bug. Walter got in a few punches, but they didn't do much. The man pulled a gun, and it grazed his side. This distracted Walter enough that the leader was able to grab him by his neck and raise him in the air, feet dangling. "I should teach you a lesson." The leader snarled. He tossed Walter over the side of the bridge and ran.

The team ran to the railing, Walter was gone.


	2. Chapter 2

A/N: Chapter 2. The charactors might seem OOC, yet we don't know how they would react to a situation like this. I was clueless as to how the team would react to one of their own dying, except for the part right after the explosion in episode 3. If this seems OOC to anyone, just remember that I'm going out on a limb and guessing about how I think they'll react. Tell me if I should bring Ralph in as a major charactor or if he should just have small "cameos" where he is mentioned. R&amp;R, and enjoy :)

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As soon as he had been thrown, Walter tried to grab the bridge. He managed to grab a railing under the bridge. The force threw him forward and dislocated his good shoulder, as well as tearing the tendons in his arm. He caught another railing with his other arm, and hung hundreds of feet above the water. He complied just dropping into the water, but then he heard his team yelling his name. He didn't dare speak, knowing it would come out as a scream of pain. Instead he hung, swinging his body so he could grab the railing with his legs. Pulling himself up, he collapsed on the catwalks under the bridge. He's passed out so fast that he didn't even move from where he was sprawled out on the floor.

The team wearily dragged themselves back to the workshop. They were bruised and at loss. Paige shoved away her own pain over the loss of Walter to take care of Happy, Sylvester and Toby. They didn't process emotion as easily as she did, and they were all silent, staring into space. She took care of their scrapes and bruises, then her own. She finished up and put the first aid kit away, then sent the geniuses up to their rooms. She watched to make sure they were okay. She was worried about them, and wasn't surprised when the only words that came out of their mouths the entire time was 'Thank you'. They had just lost the man who gave them all a strong purpose.

After the geniuses were in their rooms, she gave Cabe a call and told him to come down. Then she collapsed on the couch and started to sob.

Twenty minutes later, Cabe rushed through the door. He saw Paige crying on the couch and he ran over. "Hey, what's wrong?" Paige had become almost a daughter to him, and he hated seeing her cry. He knelt infront of her, putting his hand on her shoulder. "Where's everyone else?" He was confused as to why she was alone.

"Their u-pstairs." She choked out, wiping her eyes. "He's gone." She answered his first questions. Cabe was confused.

"Who's gone?" Fear gripped his heart. Ralph? Paige shook a little as she tried to answer without breaking down.

"Walter is dead!" She almost yelled. Cabe froze. No, he couldn't be. Walter was like a snake, slipping through danger. There was no way he was dead. Cane kept his composure, but with difficulty. He was just barely able to ask another question.

"What happened?" Paige worked to subside her sobs enough to speak clearly.

"W-e were at-ta-cked by a g-ang a-nd he g-ot th-thrown o-off the b-bridge!" She shuddered, before breaking down completely. Cabe got up and sat on the couch next to her, putting a reassuring arm across her shoulders. He felt tears slipping down his own face, now knowing that his little boy was gone.


	3. Chapter 3

A/N: Chapter 3! Thanks for the reviews, they were great. Someone pointed out that I could probably use more commas and something else that I can't remember...(I can't remember who is was either, so sorry!) Thanks for that tip, and I will try and be more wary of that type of thing. Once again, going out on a limb with reactions. I feel I might be going a little OOC but this is fanfiction, so making things a little differeng won't hurt, I hope. Anyway R&amp;R, please an thank you. Most importantly, enjoy. **Important -**. What should I do to Walter? Prolong the agony and have the gang kidnap him? Or should some bridge construction worker find him? Please tell me what I should do, as I don't know which one is better! And as for pairings, do I ring in Walter/Paige? Toby/Happy? Both? Neither? Enjoy the chapter :)

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Disclaimer: (I always forget this) Scorpion belongs to CBS and all those people not me

After 20 minutes of sobbing, Paige passed out. Cabe laid her out on the couch and covered her with a blanket. He then went to Paige's neighbor's house and told them they would need to watch Ralph for the night. He then retired to his home, collapsing onto his bed and falling alseep quickly.

The next morning when Cabe woke up he smacked his forehead in annoyance and flew out of bed, grabbing his phone off the nightstand and calling Director Merrick. "Merrick." His superior answered.

"Sir. I would like to bring a group in for a homicide investigation." Cabe requested. He knew Merrick would be confused.

"I don't remember you working on a homicide investigation. What's it about?" Merrick asked, thoroughly confused. He hadn't assigned any homicide investigation...

"This one happened last night, and it's personal. I'm opening an investigation on the murder of a young man." Cabe explained

"Who?"

"Walter O'Brien." Cabe informed his superior with difficulty. On the other end of the line, Director Merrick sighed.

"Bring in your witnesses." He ended the call. Cabe set his phone back on the nightstand and put his head in his hands. It was going to be a long day. Not only that, but Walter was DEAD. Bringing the remainder of the team in on this could break them, split them apart, pit them against each other or even send them down the rabbit hole. They could become obsessed with finding Walter's killer. Then there was Paige, who had broken down the previous night. She had quit a job to join the team. She needed the team to work. She needed to have money to pay the bills and raise her son. Her SON. He totally forgot about Ralph. He had looked up to Walter. How in the world to you tell a 9-year old misfit that one of the few people they have is dead? Especially one he looked up to so much. Dressing and combing his thinning hair, Cabe grabbed his things and headed to the workshop.

The workshop ended up being a disaster. The team sat silently on the couches. Toby's usual energy was gone as he stared at the coffee table. Page's usually bright eyes were dull as she looked down at her hands. Her make up was gone, as she had probably wiped away the smudged colors after she got up. Sylvester wasn't rambling about probabilities or writing on his chalk board. Even Happy, the most strong and independent woman he had ever seen, was slumped over on the couch. She had her shoulder against Toby's in what looked like a dependant way.

Cabe knew that is wasn't the fact that Walter wasn't here that they were like this. When Walter had been arrested, they had worked non-stop to free him. No. They were like this because Walter was dead, he wasn't coming back. Clearing his throat, Cabe got their attention. "Come on kids. We're going to meet up with Director Merrick at a Homeland base in-town. We're going to find the people who did this." The team slowly got up, dragging themselves out the door.

"I should... get home. Ralph..." Paige trailed off. Cabe stopped her.

"Your neighbor is taking care of him. They understand the situation, and agreed to take care of Ralph for a few days." He told her. She nodded and climbed into the car. Cabe got into the driver's seat and pulled away from the workshop.

Halfway through the drive, Cave tried to lighten the mood some. "Hey, Happy. When in was stuck in that nuclear plant, didn't you say you don't believe in death? Matter isn't created nor destroyed, it only changes shape." He said. Happy sighed from the backseat.

"I was wrong. Death is real." Is all she said. The rest of the ride was silent and tense, no one daring to speak. If it wasn't for the scene outside blurring as they drove, or the non-stop running of their minds, it would almost seem like time was standing still.


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: Chapter 4. A nice long chapter this time. Sorry about all the short ones, I've just been undecided about Walter's fate. I have an idea of what I'm going to do now. If you have any suggestions for Walters fate, please tell me. I don't want to do this in a way every one hates. I'll start putting in some Happy/Toby and Paige/Walter but won't go too deep with that unless someone says they want that. I won't be able to post until next Tuesday (6 days), I am going somewhere with no internet :( I hope you like it, R&amp;R, and try to give me some recommendations. Thanks

_Disclaimer: Scorpion isn't mine, it's CBS

Walter was rudely awakened from his painful sleep by a hard kick in the ribs. The force rolled his small frame over, and he curled in on himself, gasping at the pain as he rolled onto his bad shoulder. He put a hand up to the shoulder, holding it so it wouldn't hurt so much. The other hand covered the bloody graze from the bullet the day before. Someone roughly yanked him up by the back of his shirt, so he fought to open his eyes. Immediately he recognized the gang from the bridge. "We're not done yet, WALTER." The gang leader stressed the name, flaunting that he knew it. A sharp sting from a tazer bit the back of Walter's neck, rendering him immobile. With that, the gang dragged the catwalk and threw him in their car, which was parked under one end of the bridge, and drove off to who-knows-where.

The team walked into the Homeland Security base, taking in their surroundings. It was huge. A giant, complex building with different sections. They did calculations as they followed Cabe, successfully pushing Walter's death from the front of their minds. Just like he'd want them to. Cabe led them to a string of interrogation rooms, putting one person in each one. Director Merrick came in with an agent, and the case began.

Agent Mack Fitzsimmons made his way into the first room. A man, about 30, sat at the table. He wore a beat-up old hat, and was staring at Mack in an assessing way. Uncomfortable, the federal agent took a seat, opening up a thin file. He had been working at his desk when Director Merrick came up and handed him the file. Now he was supposed to question the people who witnessed the death of Walter O'Brien, one of the smartest people in the world. Sadly, it was Walter's team he was questioning. Clearing his throat, he looked up and began.

"Mr. Curtis, I understand you worked with Mr. O'Brien?" Toby nodded. Mack jotted down some notes. "Okay. Can you tell me exactly what happened?" He asked. Toby looked down at the table, before beginning.

"We were walking across the Bridge downtown. Paige had us stop to look at the sunset. While we were doing that, some gang came up behind us, and the biggest guy, the leader, pulled out a gun and pit it against Paige's head. When she tensed up, we knew something was wrong. So we all turn around, and theres a group of five guys. He asks if Happy and Paige wanted to 'have a little fun' with him. Neither of them even said anything. After that the guy flipped a lid and his group attacked us. Sylvester stole his attackers gun, and he could barely hold the thing. The guy ran, and Sylvester chucked the gun in the water. My attacker grabbed my neck, but I did some snappy-thingy Walter taught me. Disorientates you a bit. The guy got nauseous and dropped me before taking off. Happy took out her attacker easily, she's good in combat. Then she helped Paige with her attacker. During all of this, the big guy was after Walter. Walter punched him a few times, but he isn't good at combat. Soon enough this gang leader had his stupid meaty hands around his neck, before-" He stopped for a second. "THROWING HIM OVER THE SIDE OF THE GOD DAMN BRIDGE TO 'TEACH US A LESSON'!" Toby ranted. He was standing now, pacing back and forth with a distraught look on his face. Mack took this as his cue to leave.

"Alright. Thank you for your help Mr. Curtis." He said, quickly getting out of the room. He met eyes with Director Merrick, who looked dead serious. He hadn't been kidding when he said these people were different. With a sigh, Mack stepped into the next room.

This room held a larger man with glasses. He was nervously tapping his finger on the table. Mack made a note of this. Sitting down, he looked through his file, finding the name of his next witness.

"Mr. Dodd?" Mack said. Sylvester looked up, but didn't speak. Mack made another note. "Can you tell me what happened?" He asked lightly. Sylvester was wide-eyed in fear, but complied.

"We were on the, uh, bridge downtown. Um, Paige had us looking at the sunset. Some guys came up behind us, and put their gun against Paige. He wanted Paige and Happy, but they didn't go with him, so they attacked. I took a guy's gun, and um, he ran. I threw the gun in the water. Then I didn't see much, until one guy picked Walter up by the neck and um..." He paused. "Threw him off the bridge." He finished, mumbling. Mack wrote this down.

"Okay. Do you remember what this man looked like?" Mack asked, remembering he had neglected to ask his last witness after they 'blew up'. Sylvester shook his head.

"No. I can only memorize words. Walter, was the one with photographic memory." Sylvester told him. Mack wrote more notes before standing.

"Thank you for your help Mr. Dodd." With that he left the anxiety ridden man in the room by himself. Quickly he went to the next room. A young blond woman sat at the table, staring at the wall with her fingers laced together. Mack sat down an opened his file once more.

"Ms. Dineen." He said, pulling her out of her mind. She smiled and greeted him with a hello, and he decided she was normal. It saddened him that her smile didn't reach her eyes. "Can you tell me what happened?" He asked softly. Paige smiled, eyes sparkling with tears.

"We were all walking across the bridge. I saw the sunset, it was so beautiful. I stopped the team, told them to look at it. They say that those with a high IQ have low EQ. That's somewhat true. Except for Sylvester, he has too much EQ. Anyway, I knew they liked it. It was so great. But then, I felt something cold on the back of my head. I tensed up. The others noticed, and we all turned around. There was a gang. The leader 'asked' Happy and I if we wanted to 'have a little fun'. Neither of us did anything. Then he got angry, and his gang attacked. Toby held his own okay, Sylvester managed, Happy was fine, she even helped me. Not Walter though. That guy, he picked Walter up by the neck like he was 10 pounds. Then just- threw h-im." Her words broke at the end, emotion catching up. Tears spilled down her face now, and she wiped at them with the back of her hand. Mack pulled a tissue out of his pocket and gave it to Paige.

"Do you remember what this man looked like?" Mack asked. Paige shook her head.

"I only know he was tall, over 6 feet. He was really big as well, with dark colored clothes." Paige informed, clearing up the mascara that had smeared on her face. Mack noted her information then stood up.

"Thank you for your help Ms. Dineen." He left the room, walking into the last one. A young woman with dark hair sat slumped in the chair, one knee resting against the table and the other leg straight under the table. Her arms were crossed over her chest, and she appeared deep in thought. Mack made his way over, sitting in the empty chair. He opened his file and found the name of his last witness.

"Ms. Quinn?" Happy snapped our of her trance, turning her steely gaze on Mack. He wanted to run out of the room, but instead stayed and did his job. "Can you tell me what happened." He asked. Happy sat still and silent before shifting in her chair to to sit 'correctly'.

"We were going across the bridge downtown. Paige stopped us to look at the sunset. Before we know it she has a gun to the back of her head and there are five guys behind us. The leader wanted to have some fun with Paige and myself. We ignored him. He got angry, and his gang attacked. Sylvester scared his attacker off when he stole the guys gun. Toby managed himself. I took care of my attacker okay, then helped out Paige. Walter had the big guy though. While we were all fighting our own guys I saw him get in a few punches, but that guy was too much bigger. He pulled a gun and shot Walter in the side, distracting him enough to get up close. Before we know it he has Walter by the neck, and he throws him over." Happy finished. Mack was interested now. No one else had mentioned Walter getting shot.

"Ms. Quinn. No one else from your team mentioned Mr. O'Brien getting shot. How did you know?" Mack asked.

"They're in shock, all of us are. It makes sense for us to forget." She responded evenly. Writing more notes, he moved on.

"Do you remember what the gang leader looked like?" Happy froze, totally still, eyes unblinking as she stared at the table.

"Long dark hair, about shoulder length. Handlebar moustache, dark brown eyes, two inches apart. Straight teeth, very yellow. Square jaw, somewhat defined cheekbones. Very muscular, probably around 200lbs. Roughly 6'4." Happy explained thoroughly. Mack's eyebrows went up as he wrote all this down.

"And how do you know all this?" He asked, confused. Happy sighed.

"I have a sort of eidetic memory. I remember it clearly." She confessed. Mack wrote this down, and couldn't stop the pang of sorrow he felt for Happy. To have not only seen someone so close to you be thrown to their death, but to remember it clearly. That was rough. He stood up, backing away as Happy stood. "I'm going now." She stormed out the door. Mack shrugged and walked out, giving his file to Merrick and getting the heck out of dodge.

Cabe collected the team and got them out to the car. It had gone well, and from the looks of it, they were about to catch a killer. At least that's what they hoped.


	5. Chapter 5

A/N: I was able to use the interent at a sketchy internet cafe. I hope you guys enjoy, and if there are any mistakes I am so sorry. I have so much to do but I wanted to give you guys something because you are so great.

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The next day the team woke up to texts from Cabe. They had a suspect, now they just had to find him.

The car ride was bumpy and painful. If it wasn't for the electricity coursing through his veins from the tazer, Walter would be yelling in pain. Instead he was silent and still. Soon the van slowed to a stop and the doors opened. He was picked up roughly by the elbows and dragged. He felt the ground go from dirt to pavement under his feet. He was thrown roughly to the floor, elbows scraping on the concrete. Opening his eyes, Walter saw that he was in a warehouse. By the looks of it, it was old. Old and abandoned. Mostly. This was no doubt the hang out for the gang that had thrown him of the bridge and kidnapped him. "Aaagh." Walter gasped. He had stretched his gunshot wound, which had started closing. Now it was bleeding again.

"Havin fun kid?" The gang learder sneered, walking to stand over said man. Walter glared up at him. "Your gonna regret what your girls did by the time were done with you, kid." The leader snarled, anger flaming in his eyes. He nodded to his gang, who came over and dragged Walter to his feet. The action jostled Walter's shoulder and pulled on the torn tendons in his arm. The bullet graze on his side pulsed as it oozed blood. The leader looked down at him, smirking back a laugh at Walter's thin frame. Sizing up his opponent, Walter knew the guy had a good 4 inches and 60lbs on him, at least.

"So, what do I call you? You aren't particularly smart, and the condition of your clothes, as well as where you live, shows that you probably don't have much money. Are you sure you didn't bring me here to hack a bank?" Walter stated, saying his observations out loud like always. Of course like always, this got him into trouble. A hard fist slammed into his jaw, and snapped his head sideways. If it wasn't for the two men holding him up, there was no doubt he would have gone flying across the warehouse. Instead his jaw began to throb painfully. Walter added that to his mental lost of injuries.

"That smart mouth of yours is gonna get you into a lot of trouble kid." The leader growled. "You're gonna call me Bones. Nothing else. Unless you want me to break your scrawny neck." The leader, Bones, growled.

"The hell kind of name is Bones?" Walter asked. People's egos and nicknames... Bones snarled viciously, kicking Walter in the chest hard enough to make the guys holding him stumble.

"For a smart guy, your pretty stupid." Bones smirked. Walter slanted his eyes into a glare again. His ribs felt broken and his jaw throbbed. Blackness ate at his vision. "Put him up." Bones said. Walter's arms were pulled over his head, and his hands were cuffed. They put a hook on the cuffs, then pulled a chain, hoisting Walter off the ground. His feet were inches off the ground. The gang secured the chain, then stood back to allow Bones forward. He circled Walter like a shark. "We're gonna have some fun, kid."

Then there was pain.


	6. Chapter 6

A/N: A second chapter in such a small amount of time. I have Walter's fate pretty much set in stone, so I plan on making the chapters longer :) This is about 1/2 done, and I'm thinking about a sequel. I won't say what it would be about yet, because I don't want to spoil my plans for the end of this story. Also, if anyone has any ideas for fics, I would love to hear them. I'm running out of idea's, and I need to find something to do after this one is done. Thank you everyone for the support so far, R&amp;R it helps so much. Enjoy, and tell me if you have any idea's for future stories.

Walter woke up in pain. His shoulders screamed, as he stillhung from the ceiling. His wrists were bloody from the chaffing cuffs. Bruises and cuts littered his body. His mind flashed back to his torture.

Bones had punched him in the stomach, sending him swinging. His dislocated shoulder cracked and the torn tendons in his arm burned. When he swung back, a hard fist hit his jaw. Before he knew it, his ankles were bound by yet more chain and teathered to the ground. The stretched him, then grabbed him by the tie and choked him. Just as he felt he would pass out, the pressure released. He gasped for air, but choked when a fist slammed into his bullet graze. He told himself he wouldn't scream. He wouldn't break for them. He wouldn't give Bones what he wanted.

The pain continued. They yanked on his injured arm, broke his ankle, bruised his shins. The gangs fists flew continuously at his torso. When they stopped he thought maybe they were done, but instead Bones pulled out a long thin wire. He slapped it against Walters back like a whip, trying to torture a scream out of him. Somehow, he stayed quiet. Bones was getting extremely angry extremely fast. He pulled out wire that were connected to a card battery and brought them over Walter's heart. Putting them together, he held them against Walter's skin. The pain was like fire as he was burned. Finally, the great Walter O'Brien yelled. He broke.

The flashback ended, and Walter cursed his photographic memory. He would have tried to escape, but any movement sent jolts of pain though his body. Instead he hung like a ragdoll and attempted to will the nerves in his legs to start working. His body felt numb. The team likely thought he was dead, so they wouldn't look for him. The hope of ever getting out started to fade.

Happy' s eyes flicked over the picture in Cabe' s hand. "It's him." She said. The rest of the team stood nervously around her as Cabe pulled out his phone and sent a text. A minute later, a file appeared on the screen.

"The suspect is Reed Stogan, 38. 6'4, 210 pounds. Wanted for 8 robberies and 5 assaults. Add murder onto the list and he's looking at a life sentence at least." Cabe explained, scrolling through the small file on his phone. "We don't have any location on this guy, but we were hoping you bunch could find us something." The team's faces sharpened, and they all nodded. "Good. I'll send you a copy of the file." Cabe told them, sending the file to their computers. Happy, Toby and Sylvester gathered around a computer, with Paige looking over their shoulders. "I have to go. Give me a call if you find anything." He waited for a response, but only got a nod from Paige. He shrugged and walked out the door.

The team split up their search. Toby made lists of the kinds of places someone like Reed what be at. Sylvester searched for a list of places, then Happy narrowed down the list. Paige then narrowed the list down more.

Toby decided that he would staying in either:

·A warehouse

·His parents basement

·An abandoned store

·An abandoned hotel

·An abandoned apartment building

Sylvester searched up all the buildings that fit the descriptions. They kept it to a 10 mile radius, cutting out at least 100 options. The possible hide outs were:

·9814 Marysue Lane

·Natty Apartments

·Motel 7

·Holiday Stay

·Burken Apartments

·Lot 502

·Lot 625

·Lot 476

·Lot 555

Happy decided he wouldn't be in the old apartment buildings or hotels. "There's too many entrances and too much space. He wouldn't be able to keep up." That left them with 5.

·9814 Marysue Lane

·Lot 502

·Lot 625

·Lot 476

·Lot 555

Paige ruled out two more spaces. "He wouldn't be able to keep his whole gang in his parents house. Also Lot 476 is being remodeled, so he couldn't be staying there." The team then sat down with information on the remaining three locations. They found that Lot 502 had been purchased by someone, so they ruled it out. Then they found that 625 was in an area that was too public, so they ruled it out as well. When they finished, Happy pulled out her phone and called Cabe.

"We found him."


	7. Chapter 7

A/N: I'm back! I'm finally home, so I have internet once more. I'm going to apologize right now about any mistakes/confusing things in this chapter. I was getting it ready to post, but my document manager messed up and deleted the whole thing. I almost punched a wall, but instead I quickly rewrote it the best I could. So yeah. I hope everyone had a good Halloween. Also, I'm still on the fence with a sequel. I won't know if I'll be doing that until I'm nearly finished. I've started writing a new story as well, and I'll start putting it up When I finish this one. R&amp;R and enjoy :)

Disclaimer- I don't own Scorpion, CBS and Walter O'Brien do

As soon as Cabe heard the three words he was hoping for, he called in a SWAT team. They piled into a van and rode quickly to the location. Once there, he led them out of the van and they gathered by the door. Gun drawn, he nodded to an agent who kicked the door open. The SWAT team stormed the warehouse.

Walter had fallen asleep soon after waking from unconsciousness. Now he was rudely awoken by Bones, who punched him in the gut. He coughed, sucking air in as he tried to keep himself from vomiting. The deep voice of Bones cut through the fog in his mind.

"You're friends are smart. Managed to find me. They think you're dead y'know. I can't have them thinking otherwise. As long as they think you're dead, they will slowly stop coming after me. If they find you're still kickin', then they won't stop 'til they get you. Now, don't get difficult, or your friends will walk in to see a body instead of an empty building." He threatened. Walter felt a twinge of something in his gut. Fear. He didn't fight as he was taken off the chains and dragged into the van with a bag over his head. It's not like he could anyway. The muscles in his arms ached, and his whole body throbbed. The car ride was rough and bumpy, but he really couldn't care less.

At a new warehouse, probably in another state, he was dragged to a corner and chained to the floor and wall. Shackles bit at his burning wrists and ankles. "You will stay here for now. At least until we get bored. You get in the way too much when we hang you from the ceiling." Bones snarled, before throwing stale bread and a nearly empty bottled of water at Walter. "Fuel up. We can't have you dying on us yet kid." With that, Bones left him alone in the dark.

"Clear." Agents from the SWAT team called out as they searched the warehouse. Cabe sighed, holstering his gun. He began looking around but found nothing. The warehouse had been wiped clean of evidence. It wasn't until he went outside and shone his flashlight on the ground that he found anything. Footprints led from the back door to the road then stopped. A vehicle had been there. He pulled fingerprints off the door and ordered the SWAT team to leave. Back at Homeland, forensics ran the prints. Cabe made a call after getting the results.

"Reed Stogan has made a run for it. I need you guys to track him." He told the team. There was the sound of something breaking in the backround. Geniuses and smashing coffee cups... There were voices in the backround, Toby talking to Happy. By the sounds of it, Happy was the one who had broken something.

"We're on it." Paige said on the other end, then hung up. Cabe stared confused at his phone, before tucking it away and finding his superior.

"Sir. Stogan got away. We found footprints and tire tracks, then we lifted some prints from the warehouse door. They were a match. I have the team tracking him via satellite." He said.

"Find Stogan and bring him in. Don't let him get away with killing one of my best assests." Merrick ordered before turning an leaving. Cane nodded at his superiors back before walking out of the building, getting in his car, and going home.

Back at the workshop, everyone was heading off. Paige went home to take care of Ralph, and Sylvester went to bed. That left Happy and Toby alone on the couch. With one look at the man next to her, Happy got up and grabbed two beers from the fridge. She handed one to Toby, who cracked it open and took a long swig. She sat down and cracked her own drink open, and drank half of it without stopping. Then she set the bottle down and wiped her face with her sleeve.

"It's hard to believe he's really gone." Happily broke the comfortable silence between herself and Toby. He nodded and took another drink. "One of us wouldn't be so bad, but Walter...He brought us all together. With him not here it's so different. And quiet." She said. Toby finished his beer and looked over at her.

"We have low EQs Happy. True it's hard to believe right now, but right now are minds are delaying the shock. Once our minds fully process this, it'll be much weirder. It's only been days. What about in a week, or a month?" He stood up and tossed his empty can in the sink. "Night Happy." He said over his shoulder, walking up the stairs. Happy watched him go, then finished her own beer. She headed upstairs and brushed her teeth before pulling on shorts and a tank top. Laying in bed, she thought about what Toby said as she drifted off.


	8. Chapter 8

A/N: Chapter 8! This one is a little shorter than I would like, but I don't have a lot of time to write right now. Since you are all amazing people, I'm still giving you something. Any suggestions for the story, I would love to hear them. Just know I don't plan on doing anything too serious, to avoid making a charactor extremely OOC. R&amp;R and enjoy :)

The next few days, the team got into a few satellites. They tracked Stogan to another warehouse, this time in Nevada. Paige came over to the workshop to help whenever Ralph was at school. At this point, he knew Walter was dead, and was glad that his mom was helping capture Stogan. Sylvester was awake and searching for Walter 12 hours out of the day. Toby and Happy were nearly up 24/7, making eachother sleep at least few hours and eat something. Cabe waited for updates from the team, not disturbing them. When the call came, he put together a SWAT team and they booked it to the building.

Walter couldn't keep track of how long he was in the warehouse. It couldn't have been more than a few days, as he wasn't dead from dehydration. His wounds were starting to heal as well. The slashes on his back from the wire were scabbing over. His graze was no longer bleeding. His bruises were starting to lighten, though they were still all black and blue. Even his burns no longer hurt, reduced to tingles. The only injuries that weren't doing anything were the cuts of his wrists and ankles, as the shackles constantly dug into them. His dislocated shoulder and torn tendons weren't doing much either. He rested his head against the wall behind him. The wall he had been slumped against for what seemed like days. He almost wished that Bones would just kill him already. His wish did not come.

Soon enough, Bones and his gang came back. They tore him roughly and painfully from the shackles, and a small groan escaped him. The noise earned him a hard slap across the face. "Keep quiet kid." Bones snarled into his face, before turning to his gang. Two burly men came forward and grabbed Walter's crumpled form from the ground. They roughly pulled him to his feet and shoved him forward, slapping cuffs of his wrists. The group pushed Walter through the warehouse and out the door. When they neared the van, they shoved Walter forward and grabbed a metal pipe from the ground. The man with the pipe slammed it into the back of Walter's head like he was hitting a ping pong ball, just enough force to knock him out. Sadly Walter was weak, so the force knocked him forward, making him land on his injured shoulder. At least he was unconscious. The gang threw Walter's motionless body into the van and slammed the door, before climbing in and driving off.

As the gang drove off, sirens blared behind them. They had left just in time. Homeland Security had just come knocking.

Cabe ran toward the warehouse with the SWAT team. Just like last time, they ripped the door open and stormed in. They searched the whole building, but turned up nothing. Almost nothing. One of the SWAT agents found something on the ground. "The hell..." The agent mumbled, bending down. Flipping the paper around, he saw writing. Looking up, he saw Cabe. Running over, he stopped in front of his superior. "Sir. This was on the floor near the middle of the building." He reported, handing over the paper. Cabe took it and waved him off.

"What the hell is this?" Cabe mumbled, flipping the paper over. Then he spotted the writing. Scanning it over, he scowled, then pulled out his phone. "Happy? We didn't find Stogan, but I have something you need to see. Prep the van and get over here." He said. The team was 6 hours away in Los Angeles, but they were going to have to start traveling with the SWAT team. This just turned serious. Cabe stuffed the note in his pocket, the words swirling in his head.

Happy shoved her phone in her pocket and ran to the garage. The van sat unlocked in the corner, so she ran over and yanked open the back doors. Climbing in, she checked over all the systems. Everything was in working order. She bolted back to the workshop, finding the rest of the team congregated on the couch. "Hey, pack you bags and get in the van. Let's go! I'll explain on the way." She yelled, running upstairs to her own room and throwing some stuff in a duffel bag. She then ran back down to the garage and jumped into the drivers seat of the van. Paige, Sylvester and Toby ran into the garage, climbing into the car. Happy hit a button and the garage door opened. She backed the car out and shut the garage before speeding off. Toby climbed into the passenger seat in the front and looked over at Happy.

"Why the hell are we suddenly taking a road trip?" He asked. Happy didn't take her eyes off the road.

"Stogan just started a game of cat and mouse."


	9. Chapter 9

A/N:Chapter 9. I got a review from Emma, and they said this story is absurd. I have to agree, I've been going off to lala-land when I'm writing and having too much fun coming up with the future of the characters. I will say, that a lot of the torture is stuff I pulled out of PG-13 shows I watched. It's just different things I've seen in them. The teams reactions are just my guesses. I will just say, thank you Emma for the heads up, I needed it. I'm working to make this story more logical while not rushing. But I do have a question. Should I wrap it up in chapter 10? Do a time skip with a summary of what the team has been doing, and a short overview of Walter then have the tea find him, the end? I continue to kind of draw it out? I want to know what you all think. R&amp;R, sorry again for such short chapters, I took out a bit when I was working with the logic in the story.

Disclaimer: I don't an Scorpion

Happy drove like a bat out of hell to Cabe's location, only stopping twice to use the restroom. No one did anything to pass the time. The truth was, their minds were on Walter. He was dead, and they couldn't even catch his killer. Surely if it had been one of them, Walter would have found and captured the killer. Sadly, none of them were Walter. By the time they reached the base Cabe was at, Paige' s eyes were ringed with red and her face was tearstained. Sylvester's hands were shaking. Toby and Happy had grim looks on their faces. Outside dawn was breaking, and the morning light made the tears in Paige's eyes shimmer.

The team walked into the building, and Cabe walked up to meet them. He looked tired, and the team concluded he had been waiting all night. Happy walked right up to Cabe, tilting her head up to look at him. "Stogans playing cat and mouse, isn't he?" She asked. He nodded, eyebrows furrowed in confusion.

"How did you know?" Happy shrugged.

"You told us to come and see something, and you said you didn't catch him." She stated. Cabe contemplated this then shrugged, before leading the team into the building. Each one got a visitor tag before they went into a small room with a large screen on one of the walls. The room was empty, bar it's occupants, Merrick, Cabe and the team. Once everyone had filed in, Merrick pulled a file up on the screen and opened it.

"This is what we'd have on Reed Stogan so far. Is there anything else you can add?" Merrick asked. Happy went up to the screen, Sylvester and Toby looking over her shoulders. They looked through the rest of the information, and Paige looked at it from the back of the room. When they finished, Happy, Toby and Sylvester moved to the back of the room with Paige.

"We dont have anything." Toby admitted, and silence engulfed the room. Then Paige's phone rang, and she quickly answered. After mumbling a few responses she hung up.

"Ralph's sitter." She explained, and everyone turned their focus back on the screen. Cabe suddenly jumped as rummaged in his shirt pocket. "Is there something wrong Cabe?" Paige asked he shook his head, pulling a piece of paper our of his pocket.

"Here. One of my agents found this in the warehouse." He handed the paper to Paige, and she scanned it over with her eyes. Her hand flew to her mouth.

"Oh, oh my god." She whispered, and the rest of the team came over and read the note. Happy turned around and punched the wall. Toby planted his hands against the wall, his mind working through the statement. Sylvester stood silently with a deer-in-headlights expression. Tears simmered in Paige' s eyes.

"THAT SON OF A BITCH!" Happy yelled, punching the wall again. Toby put a calming hand on her shoulder, and she angrily shrugged it off. "COME ON! 'It's her fault he's dead', THATS JUST-JUST-ARRAAGGHH!" She yelled. She lined the wall again, hard enough that the skin on her knuckle split. Thankfully Toby stepped in and gave her a small push toward the door, forcing he to the infirmary to fix her knuckles and to cool down. Cabe, who had been watching the outburst, stepped toward the middle of the room after Happy and Toby were gone.

"I thought you guys should see that, the note. I want to make sure that you guys realize it's not he fault of any of you. The one to blame is the man who killed him, Reed Stogan." He told the remainder of the team. Sylvester finally unfroze, nodding toward Cabe while still staying silent. Paige had been quiet and still, but now she looked up at Cabe and Merrick with a fierce flame buring angrily in her eyes. "Lets find Stogan. Find him and make him pay for what he's done." She said. Everyone else in the room nodded, and they headed out to get Toby and Happy.

Walter woke up chained to the ceiling. Bones was looking up at him, a sneer on his face. "Lucky you, we're bored kid." Walter winced, not liking what he knew was coming.


	10. Chapter 10

A/N: Chapter 10! I didn't want to make everyone suffer through a bunch of boring chapters of the same torture and feels. Instead, I skipped ahead. You have a brief overview that pretty much sums up the time I skipped. I hope everyone likes this. I think it time to wrap up the story :( It has to end at some point, hehe. Also, for anyone who watches the Scorpion previews on the CBS app/website, what do you think of Walter street racing? O.o R&amp;R, it helps. Enjoy

The team continued their search. They followed Stogan from warehouse to warehouse. They went from California to Nevada, Nevada to Montana, Montana to Michigan, Michigan to New York, then to 6 other states. Each time, a SWAT team would storm the warehouse they tracked Stogan to, and every time they only found a note. Despite their lack of success, the team refused to give up. They stayed in different HS bases around the country, searching for Stogan.

After three months of hard searching, they were still coming up empty handed. "Come on! Stogan has to slip up somewhere..." Happy trailed off, tugging at her hair. Toby came up behind her.

"We'll keep looking." Is all he said. He had said those three words a hundred times in the past three months, and they had lost their meaning long ago. Paige spoke up from the corner.

"I think we should stop." All heads turned to her, faces contorted in disbelief. "Would he really want us to waste away like this? Spending almost every hour of every day searching for some guy? Finding Stogan won't bring Walter back. I mean, I want to capture Stogan as much as the next person. I want to make him pay for what he did. What were doing now though, were not helping anyone." She explained. Happy, Toby and Sylvester took a minute to process this, and all their faces fell.

"We'll try one more place." Happy said, her face suddenly aging 10 years. We skin had lost it's youthful glow, and her face was ridden with stress lines. Toby didn't look much better. With his baggy eyes and messy hair. He had at least shaved a few days ago, leaving him with his normal stubble. Sylvester looked better. His glasses were constantly crooked, and his eyebrows lessened to be permanently knit together. Paige herself had lines all over her face. She had been taking car of not only a grouo of geniuses, but her 9 year-old genius son. The rest of the team nodded their heads in agreement to Happy' s comment, and Toby picked up the phone.

"Hey Cabe. We have one more warehouse to look at. We talked, and we don't think Walter would want us to go so crazy with finding Stogan. We'll send coordinates and meet you at this last spot." He informed the team's handler before hanging up. Happy grabbed her phone and texted coordinates to Cabe. Then the whole team got into the van and drove off.

After Happy hung up, Cabe almost chucked his phone across the room. Instead he gathered his SWAT team and informed Merrick of the update on the case. Merrick wasn't happy that they were giving up, but understood. Cabe tucked his phone into his pocket and got in the SWAT van.

It was dark. Dark and quiet. Walter couldn't see anything. Not that there was anything to see in the dark little cell he had been thrown into. He didn't know how long he had been Bones prisoner, as it was impossible to tell. He was given just enough food and water that he wouldn't die. That wasn't enough though. His wounds were no longer healing. That had stopped forever ago. The welts on his back and chest still oozed. The bullet graze on his side was never given enough time to heal before it was used as a target. His jaw was bruised, like his whole body. His ankle was sore, but not broken. The torn tendons in his arm were barely 40% healed from what he could tell, and his dislocated shoulder was constantly popped out of the socket, not matter how many times he put it back in. Although they had stopped bashing him unconscious When they moved him, his head still throbbed. His clothes were scraps. His jeans were torn in various places from mid-thigh down. His shirt was ripped and torn, barely a scrap of material. His tie was long gone. All his remaining clothes were dirty, grimey and bloodstained. His hair was longer, curls brushing against his forehead. He had no scruff, as Bones thought he looked bad with it and constantly shaved it off with his knife.

Sitting in his tiny cement cell, Walter thought about his current condition. He was lightheaded and dizzy, not to mention nauseous and tired. Hunger no longer knawed his deprived stomach, and his throat was always dry from lack of water. Dry coughs would make his entire body quake. He couldn't even move, leaning all his weight on the wall he was slumped against. He wanted to sleep, but never could. The few hours he got were just refreshers to his torture. He didn't want to go through that again. The world around him was dark, but it still went fuzzy. He forced his eyes to stay open, even though he was so tired. Just because he was afraid he wouldn't be able to open them again. Really though, would that be worse then how things were now? Maybe it wouldn't hurt to close his eyes for a few seconds. Slowly, he blinked a few times, then fell into the darkness, allowing it to consume him.

No one was there to see Walter O'Brien's eyes go half lidded, or to see his limp body slide to the side. No one watched as he unconsciously curled in on himself, slowly fading away completely.

The team met the SWAT team and Cabe outside of a rustic warehouse in California. They were back in LA, the place this all had started. They were home, home for their last attempt. Poised outside the door, they swarmed the building.

Surprisingly, they walked right in on Stogan. He and his gang were playing cards on a crate. Stogan and his gang jumped up with a chorus of 'hey!'s and 'what man!'s. The SWAT team yelled at them to get on the ground, and the team watched as they cuffed the men. Cabe was watching with them, but then he noticed a concrete room in the corner. Pulling out his gun, he walked over, holding it out and grabbing the handle. Taking a deep breath, he pulled opened the door and looked inside. A small man lay on the floor, covered in crusty blood and grime. He was curled in on himself, on his side. Dark curles tickled his forehead, and his half-lidded eyes look lazily at the floor. The man looked dead, but as broken and dirty as he was, Cabe recognized him. Cabe's arms suddenly felk like lead, his gun dropping to the floor. He breathed the name of the man in front of him.

"Walter"


	11. Chapter 11

A/N: Chapter 11. Thanks for all the reviews! I will definitely try to write a few chapters of how Walter adjusts to normal life and how things affect him. I say try because I will probably fail. Any way I hope you guys like where this story goes, R&amp;R. If you have any prompts, I would love to hear them. Enjoy :)

Cabe stumbled into the small room, dropping to his knees next to the man who had become his son. Placing a gentle hand on Walter's side, he shook him lightly, like any movement would turn him to dust. Walter didn't stir, and didn't make any noise. Putting a hand on Walter's neck, he looked for a pulse. For a few seconds he found nothing, and was afraid they were too late. Then there was the smallest of a flutter underneath his fingers. A sigh of relief escaped him, but he knew Walter needed to get out of there. Turning his head, he yelled out the door. "PAIGE, HAPPY, TOBY, SYLVESTER! GET IN HERE NOW!" Footsteps and voices grew near, then the people he had called for materialized in the doorway. All of them had the same shocked look on their faces.

"Walter?" They all said in sync. Cabe waved them over, and the four adults sprang forward and surrounded Walter.

"He's barely breathing, and his pulse is almost nonexistent." Cabe informed them. Sylvester quickly ran calculations.

"It would take 30 minutes for an ambulance to get him to the hospital. Guys, Walter doesn't have 30 minutes." The human calculator said. The team looked around at each other nervously.

"Get to the van, I got Walter." Cabe said. The team obliged, stepping out of the room. They watched as Cabe picked Walter's small body off the floor, carrying him out of the room like a sleeping child. The rest of the team booked it to the van, throwing open the doors and getting in. When Cabe climbed in, carefully but quickly, Toby slammed the door shut and Happy gunned it. As Happy got them the heck out of dodge, Toby, Sylvester, Paige and Cabe all used themselves as protective barriers. They kept Walter from jostling around, afraid of further injury to him. The car ride was so fast, yet so slow. An emotionally painful torture to the team who had to watch their friend slowly die.

Finally they reached the hospital, and Cabe grabbed Walter. They all ran ran into the ER, ignoring the strange looks people shot their way. The receptionist looked up from her papers as the team ran in. With one look at Walter, she worriedly called doctors down. In seconds, a gurney was wheeled out. Cabe gently set Walter on it, and watched as he was whisked away. The team only snapped out of their trance when the receptionist came up and handed Cabe some papers. "We'll need you to fill these in." She said, turning away and going back to her desk. Paige and Cabe ushered Toby, Happy and Sylvester into the uncomfortable plastic chairs of the waiting room. The three geniuses had shock written all over their faces as their minds processed what had happened in the last 20 minutes. Paige was silently crying, tears dripping down her face as she stared at the ER door. Cabe slowly filled out the papers, processing everything as he did so. They were all so caught up in shock, that they didn't see the stewing mother who was sitting with a boy who had a bad case of the flu.

The mother turned to her son and told him to stay put, before getting up and storming over to the receptionist. She slammed her hands down on the counter, and the receptionist looked up. "Can I help you?" The woman looked like she was about to blow up. Then again, she was.

"WHY did you let and ADULT get care before MY CHILD! We have been WAITING for an HOUR and my son keeps VOMITING! He NEEDS a doctor NOW!" The woman ranted. The receptionist looked up at her.

"Sorry ma'am, but your son will have to wait. The man that just went in needs immediate care-" the woman cut the receptionist off with a screech.

"NO! That MAN can WAIT like MY SON has been for the past HOUR! CHILDREN are more IMPORTANT-" the woman began to rant. No one noticed that Happy had gotten up, until the woman's head snapped sideways, a red handprint growing on her cheek. Happy stood next to the woman, her hand red and her face flushed.

"YOUR SON HAS THE FLU! HE CAN WAIT ANOTHER HOUR. HELL YOU SHOULD JUST GO TO YOUR DOCTOR NOT THE DAMN HOSPITAL. THAT MAN THEY JUST BROUGHT IN, IS MY FRIEND. THREE MONTHS AGO, HE SOMEHOW SURVIVED A FALL OFF THE BRIDGE DOWNTOWN. HE GOT SHOT TOO. HE'S BEEN MISSING FOR THREE MONTHS AND ITS LIKELY THAT HE WAS KIDNAPPED AND TORTURED DURING THAT TIME. HE WAS ON DEATH'S DOORSTEP WHEN WE FOUND HIM, AND HE CAN'T WAIT FOR HELP. HE COULD BE DEAD RIGHT NOW FOR ALL I KNOW. SO GO SIT DOWN IN YOU GOD DAMN CHAIR AND WAIT YOU BITCH!" Happy yelled. The woman stood frozen where she stood, but soon walked back over and sat down next to her son, and annoyed look crossing her face. Happy was fuming, and she punched the wall. Luckily, that part of the wall was concrete, so it didn't break. After examining her hand for any injuries from the punch, Happy sat back down. The others leaned slightly away from her in terror.

After a few minutes Cabe started muttering. "So much paperwork..." He filled out sheet after sheet daily, and now he was filling out 5 sheets of paper on Walter. Sometimes he asked the others if they knew something, like allergies, if he didn't know. Once he finished, he got up and turned the clipboard in before sitting down and settling into not only the tense silence around the team, but the awkward silence in the room that had followed Happy's outburst.

It was gonna be a LOOOONNGG wait.


	12. Chapter 12

A/N: Chapter 12! Another short one, I am so sorry about that. I wanted to leave off with something kind of suspenseful, so this is where it ended up. Also, I am currently working on an Avengers fanfic, a Big Hero 6 fanfic, and another Scorpion fanfic. I really don't have a life. Anyway, has anyone seen Big Hero 6? I watched it yesterday and (this isn't a spoiler, it's something you could find out from simply the trailer) I suddenly realized they were Japanese. The names make more sense now. Anyways, thank you for all the support on this fanfic. I know my chapters are all so short and I'm so sorry about that. You can probably expect maybe, 2-10 more chapterw, depending on how long I draw this out. R&amp;R, it really helps.

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Disclaimer: I don't own Scorpion

Finally, after six hours, a doctor came out. "Walter O'Brien." The team stood up and walked over.

"How is he?" Cabe asked. The doctor adjusted his scrubs before answering.

"He is stable, but the injuries were extensive. Multiple lacerations on chest and back, dislocated right shoulder, torn tendons in right arm, gunshot wound on left side, small third degree burns on back, shoulders and chest, three fractured ribs that are 60% healed, 40% bruising on his entire body, extreme dehydration and extreme starvation. The list goes on. Though we suspect he was only given enough food and water that he wouldn't die." The doctor read off his clipboard. The whole team was frozen in shock at the extensive injuries. Cabe could barely speak, but managed to keep his voice even.

"Can we see him?" The doctor nodded, and the were lead down a few hallways and into a small room. Walter lay on the bed, pale and small. His small body donned scrubs, along with the tubes and wires that seemed to be attached everywhere. His injuries were all covered by the scrubs and the blanket tucked around his waist, but those things didn't hide the most disturbing thing. A breathing tube was shoved down Walter's throat, not a good sign. In fact, the only reason they knew he was alive was the steadily beeping heart moniter and the small rise and fall of his chest.

"The breathing tube is to take stress off his lungs, so his body will heal quicker." The doctor explained to them, seeing their worry. With that, the scrub-clad man stepped out of the room to let the team spend alone time with their friend. Paige, Happy, Toby, Sylvester and Cabe gathered around the hospital bed. Paige took one of Walter's hands, and Cabe took the other. They all stood in silence for what could have been a century, but was really just a few minutes. They all knew that they couldn't stay forever.

Happy put her hand gently on Walters leg. "Hang in there Walt." She said softly, before taking a step back. Sylvester gave a nod, even though he knew Walter couldn't see him. Toby lightly patted Walter's leg.

"Don't do anything stupid without us." He said, before joining Happy and Sylvester by the door. Paige gave Walter's hand a squeeze, then went to the door. Cabe surprised everyone when he reached out and brushed the long curls off Walter's forehead. With a small sqeeze to the younger man's hand, he said.

"Stogan won't get away with what he's done to you. I'll make sure he pays the maximum price. But if I do that, then you have to get better. Besides, I still owe you a few paychecks kid." He turned and walked out the door, the rest of the team followed behind him. Getting in the van, the team dropped Cabe off at his house and Paige at hers, before heading back to the workshop. There, they all seperated, going to their rooms. For the first time in three months, they all slept well.

Over the next few days, the team would visit Walter. Sometimes they all went together. Other times they went in small groups or by themselves. It wasn't until a few days after they brought him in, when they were all in the room, that the heart moniter became frantic. Walter's eyes flew open.

He was awake


	13. Chapter 13

A/N: Chapter 13. Mostly a drawn out thing. Realistically, if a person were to wake up after only a few days of rest after all those injuries, they wouldn't stay conscious long. This is just my take on what that would be like. I understand Walter might seem a little OOC near the end of this chapter, but I felt like putting in a little Walter/Paige fluff. R&amp;R and I hope you like this. Sorry again for another short chapter.

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The eerie calm that had set over the team dissipated the second the heart moniter went erratic. It started beeping faster, then irregular. Nurses and doctors swarmed in, encircling Walter. The team was shoved away, into the wall. Their view of Walter was mostly blocked, but they could still see his face. When his eyes flew open, they knew that everything was fine.

The doctors pulled the breathing tube out, and Walter coughed on the unpurified air. An oxygen mask was materialized out of no where and placed on his face. Soon enough, his coughing subsided and his eyes drooped. It looked like the jolt of energy he had revieved upon waking was now draining away. His body relaxed, and he blinked his eyes shut. The heart moniter evened, and Walter passed out. The doctors filed out, except for one who stayed behind. He grabbed the clipboard from the end of the bed and filled some things in before turning to the team.

"You can expect this to happen a few times. His body is using all of its energy to heal, so it's likely he'll be in and out for a day." The doctor informed, before he placed the clipboard back on its hook and walked out. Just after the door shut, a smile grew on Paige's face.

"He's gonna be okay." She said softly, her eyes landing on Walter. The rest of the team followed her gaze, watching the slow rise and fall of Walter's chest. After a minute of staring, things got a little uncomfortable. Exchanging looks, everyone sat back down in their chairs to wait.

Walter remembered it being dark. His body was numb and leaden, he couldn't feel or move anything. The world on the other side of his closed eyelids grew lighter. Slowly he got back some feeling. A dull ache engulfed his body, and he heard something beeping erratically. He wished it would just shut off. Suddenly he felt a wave of energy, and his eyes flew open. Harsh fluorescent lights attacked his sensitive pupils, and he blinked in attempts to adjust his eyes.

After a few seconds his eyes were adjusted, and he felt something in his throat. Muffled voices were instructing him of something. Something about breathing out. He felt a tug on the object in his throat, and he coughed. In an instant, the object was gone. Now he coughed more. The unmedicated, unpurified air filled his lungs. It burned. Through his squinted eyes, he saw people in scrubs standing over him. One of them was putting something on his face. Too weak to fight, he allowed them to place the object on his face. Clean air filled his lungs, and he was finally able to breathe. He started relaxing, and as he did, he grew tired. His eyes blinked shut, and he was swept back into the darkness.

Over the next few hours, Walter drifted in and out of consciousness. The team watched, eyes glued to Walter's face every time the moniter spiked. Finally after a few hours, Toby stood up. "I'm gonna make a run for food, any input?" He asked. No one really said anything, but Happy stood up.

"I'll go with you." She said. Toby shrugged, the turned and walked out the door with Happy trailing behind him.

Thirty minutes later, Toby and Happy returned. They carried subway bags, cokes and waters. Toby passed out the subs, and Happy passed out the drinks. The team settled back into their silence, broken only by the crunch of vegetables and the whir of caps being twisted off bottles.

The next day, at 4am, Paige woke up to pressure on her hand. At first she was confused, but then she opened her eyes and looked up. A hand gently held hers, and she followed the arm, looking up and up until she was staring into chocolate brown orbs. They were brightened, like the owner of them was smiling. It made sense though, because Walter O'Brien was smiling.


	14. Chapter 14

A/N: Chapter 14. Im sorry about all these short chapters and stuff. Usually I write a few chapters a day, but I keep getting all these other idea's when I work on this one so it makes it impossible to finish. That isn't an excuse though. Anyway, this story will probably have about 6 more chapters. It depends really on what I do with Walter's emotional state. Anyways R&amp;R, I love reviews. Also tell me if I should have any Happy/Toby fluff on the side. This is really a team building fic that will end with some Paige/Walter, but Happy/Toby wouldn't hurt, as long as it was more of an off to the side thing. Maybe im just into all the Happy/Toby stuff because of last night's episode, ugh the rejection. Okay I'll stop rambling now. Enjoy :)

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"Walter!? Are you okay? How do you feel?" Paige asked him, rapid-fire style. Question after question. Instead of answering, he just laughed softly. Reaching up, Walter slowly pulled the oxygen mask off his face, adjusting to the air. After a minute he was okay, so he started answering her questions.

"I'm alright Paige. My throat burns, my lungs don't like the unpurified air, and my body is a combination of burning and aching, but I'm fine." He said. Paige opened her mouth like she wanted to lecture him, but shut it again. Instead she shook her head and woke up the rest of the team. Their responses were mostly "Walt?!" or "Walter?!" He looked them all over, noticing how different they looked. Toby and Sylvester had longer hair, they all had stress lines. A sudden question hit him.

"How long? How long was I gone?" He asked seriously, looking each member of his team in the eye. They all looked away, but Cabe spoke in a low voice.

"Three months. We thought you died at the bridge. We started a murder investigation, found that your "killer" was Reed Stogan. We tracked him for three months, but he kept getting away. Finally, we were about to give up, but we searched one more warehouse. We captured Stogan, and found you nearly dead in a cement cell." Cabe admitted. Walter paled, turning to look at the ceiling. Thoughts flowed through his head. Bones's real name was Reed Stogan? Shaking the thoughts away, he sighed and closed his eyes.

"When do I get out of here?" He asked. They all looked at him in shock.

"If it was up to us, you'd be stuck here until you're totally healed. Your free to go after they get through all the IVs they lined up." Toby explained. Walter frowned and looked at his left hand, which he never thought to check. Sure enough it had an IV in it, and there were 10 more bags lined up on the table next to his bed.

"Why all the IVs?" He complained.

"You were starved and severely dehydrated. They have to fix you now." Happy said dryly. With a growl, Walter laid back and closed his eyes. At least he could just sleep the time away.

Two days later, Walter got through all of his IVs. Toby ran back to the garage and got Walter some real clothes. The team stepped out so he could put his clothes on, finally getting out of those cursed scrubs.

Ten minutes later, they were trying to wrestle him into the wheelchair. "Come on Walter. It's policy." Paige said. Walter glared at her, standing his ground in the corner despite he wanted to sit down.

"There is no way I am sitting in that." He argued. Finally Happy stepped forward.

"Sit in the chair or I give you another concussion and you sit in it unconscious." She threatened. Walter looked her in the eyes, not responding. To prove that she wasn't kidding, Happy took a step forward. Walter's eyes dilated in surprise and he relented. Behind Happy, Toby was smirking. He turned to Sylvester and said.

"I love it when she does that." The mathematician just looked at the wall, trying not to think of all the diseases someone could get from a hospital as well as the obvious crush Toby had on Happy.

Paige grabbed the handles of the wheelchair and pushed Walter out of the room, Cabe holding open for her and the rest of the team. They finally got to the car, and Walter unsteadily stood up, climbing into the backseat. While the others got in, Paige ran the wheelchair back to the ER. Running back, she climbed into the empty seat next to Walter and pulled a list out of her purse. "Alright. Time to get your prescription." Walter groaned, opening his mouth to complain.

"Complain and I'll knock your lights out." Happy sat from behind him. Walter shut his mouth, but the scowl on his face stayed.

The team made a quick trip to the pharmacy, then went home. As they pulled up in front of the workshop, the corner of Walter's mouth twitched into a smile. He was home.


	15. Chapter 15

A/N: Another short chapter . gaah I'm so sorry. I feel bad because my chapters are short. This one is just some aftermath feelings from the team. Next chapter Walter's internal torture will begin. R&amp;R, and I will do my best to make the next chapter at least 1000 words. Enjoy and sorry again for the shortness.

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When Walter got out of the car, Paige was instantly there. She followed him, watching his every move. When he stumbled, she shot forward and caught him. He steadied himself and pushed her away lightly. As made his way inside, he felt everyone's eyes on him. When he tried to go up the stairs, a protective Paige stopped him. "No. You cannot go upstairs, it's too much work." She said. Walter scowled.

"No it's not. I'm capable of walking up the stairs..." He ranted, taking a step up to prove his point. To be honest, the pain medication he had taken that morning were wearing off. Not to mention that it was getting late, so he was extra tired. "I just want to sleep." He ground out. Paige seemed to contemplate this for a moment before reluctantly moving down to stand next to him. She pulled his arm over her shoulders and grabbed his waist.

"Fine, but I'm helping you. The last thing we need is Cabe yelling at us because we let the 4th smartest guy ever fall to his death down the stairs." She shot Cabe a look and he put his hands up in something like surrender. Walter groaned but allowed Paige to help him up the stairs. It was good she did, because by the time they reached the top, he was tired. Despite having Paige dragging half his weight, the walk up the stairs had drained him. He didn't fight when she helped him to his room. When they got there, he flopped down on the bed and passed out. Paige smiled and grabbed a few blankets from the closet, throwing them over him before heading back downstairs.

"Walter is asleep." She announced as she descended the stairs. The team turned look at her, relieved.

"Good. He's gonna need it." Cabe said. The others gave knowing nods. Standing up, Cabe straightened his suit. "I'm heading home. Give me a call if you have any problems." He told them, before walking out the door. Looking out the window, the they realized how late it was getting. She grabbed her purse and coat from Walter's desk.

"I should get home. Ralph has been stuck with his sitter for three months, and I want to see him. I'll let him skip school tomorrow and come here." She promised, waving at the team before hurting out the door. Running over to her cherry red car, she climbed in and wiped off the dust. It had been stored away in the team's garage for the past three months. Turning the key in the ignition, the car growled to life. With a smile she headed home.

Back inside, the team was tired. The past three months had stressed them out. Sylvester plopped down on a chair and turned on the tv. Toby sat down on the couch, ad Happy sat next to him. The three watched tv for a good hour. When Toby got tired, he went to get up, but found he couldn't. Looking over, he saw Happy asleep, her head resting on his shoulder. He smiled, seeing that the stress lines that had appeared on her face were gone. Carefully, he stood up and maneuvered himself so he could pick her up bridal style. Silently, he walked up the stairs and to Happy's room. Laying her down on he bed, he carefully covered her up before heading to his own room and flopping down on the bed. He fell asleep in his jeans and t-shirt from that day.

Downstairs, Sylvester had watched Toby carefully pick and carry her upstairs. He smiled at the image, liking the pair together. They argued like an old couple, but they always had eachothers backs. Then their was Walter and Paige. He hadn't missed how Paige had turned into Walter's personal mother-hen. He liked the idea of his teammates getting close. He just hoped he wouldn't hear them through the walls at night. With a shiver he headed upstairs to sleep.


	16. Chapter 16

A/N: Chapter 16. I'm starting to wrap up the story. This will pretty much be Walter's mental torture and some Paige/Walter fluffiness as it finishes. Toby/Happy will be a side thing, then Sylvester and Cabe's thoughts will be out there. There could be slight OOCness so I can torture Walter, as well as OOCness where I try to make it fluffy. You have been warned. R&amp;R, and enjoy :)

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The next day went great. Paige brought Ralph over, and he was more than thrilled to skip school and see Walter. He ran over to the injured man instantly, taking a seat next to him and talking about some equation he had found online and solved. Paige couldn't stop herself from smiling as she saw her two favorite guys talking. Not that she would admit to anyone that she liked Walter that much. Unfortunately for her, Sylvester had caught the looks she had sent in Walter's direction. He knew exactly what was going on.

When Walter needed to use the bathroom, Ralph got up and talked with the rest of the team a little as Paige followed Walter. As soon as Walter came back, the little boy resumed talking to him. Happy and Toby went to subway to get everyone lunch, and their conversation started in the car.

"You mind telling me how I got to my room last night?" Happy asked as the car started moving. Toby tightened his grip on the steering wheel.

"You walked there?" He offered. Happy shook her head before changing the subject.

"I'm glad Walter's not dead and all, I just wonder how he survived. I mean, getting shot in the side, thrown off a bridge, tortured for three months. How do you survive that?" She asked. Toby shrugged, glancing at her before talking.

"I'm not sure. But he is damn lucky. His shoulder was dislocated and the tendons in his arm were torn, yet they managed to fix them in time fir him to get out of the hospital without wearing a sling. I had to wear a sling for a week last time I dislocated my shoulder." Toby complained. Happy rolled her eyes, but the corners of her mouth twitched into a smile. Toby's face grew serious. "The only thing I'm worried about is his mental state. He has emotions, he just can't process them right. That doesn't mean that he can't be traumatized. You don't go through three months of torture and walk out of it the same. Even if it doesn't make you jump at every noise, torture will stay with you. In your dreams, in your thoughts. You think you'll see someone in a crowd." Toby explained. "I don't think Walter can dodge that bullet." Both of them went silent, pondering this.

"Thank god we have Paige." Happy broke the silence. With one more shared look, Toby parked the car and they went inside to order. They got the food and bought a few waters before climbing back in the car. The ride home was silent. When the pair reached the warehouse, Happy grabbed the bag with all the stuff. She cut Toby off on his way to the door and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks for taking me to my room last night." She said, smiling smugly as his face turned red. They brought the food inside, and everyone was more than ready to eat. The rest of the day went quite well.

The problems started at night. Happy shared the details of her and Toby's conversation about Walter with Paige, Sylvester and Cabe. Paige called up the sitter and had her pick Ralph up, explaining the details to the woman, who "totally understood". It was a good thing Ralph wasn't there for Walter's episode. The man had been lying peacefully on the couch, the rest of the team on couches and chair around him, watching tv. First, his head twitched slightly to the side a few times. Then he broke into a cold sweat. His breathing became irregular. The team got up to help him, but he shot up, holding his chest. Terror and pain filled his eyes, and he struggled to get his breathing under control. Paige silently sat down at one end of the couch, pulling Walter's head into her lap. She gently ran her fingers through his long curls that had not yet been cut. He relaxed quickly, falling back asleep and missing the worried glances the team kept shooting eachother.

"I think he's good." Paige said. The others nodded. Paige got up, carefully moving Walter in a way that wouldn't wake him up. His only reaction was a small groan of protest. The team covered him with a few blankets and gave him a few pillows. Paige stayed down on the other couch in case he woke up again, and Cane headed home. The others soon made their way to their rooms for the night. It was difficult for them to fall asleep, knowing that Walter was being troubled.

It had begun.


	17. Chapter 17

A/N: *Ducks to avoid a tomato* Another chapter! *Avoids another tomato* I feel like I'm making this story worse and worse as I go, as well the characters OOC. Im trying some character development, in the form of Toby digging into his past a little, and Walter opening up somewhat about what happened with Stogan (Bones). So yeah. R&amp;R, please and thank ya. Enjoy :)

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The next few nights were exactly the same. Walter would wake up screaming, and Paige would run upstairs to his room. She would sit with him, running her fingers through his hair until he fell back asleep. Then she would go back downstairs and pass out on the couch. It was the same routine.

Paige and Walter weren't the only ones who weren't sleeping. Each time Walter screamed at night, the whole team would wake up. The night Cabe stayed at the workshop, he was woken up by Walter's screams. After that he couldn't fall back asleep, so when the rest of the team saw him in the morning, they weren't surprised that he had been awake since 2am.

Happy was worried, to say the least. She was very protective of the guys, and each night when she heard Walter scream, it took every ounce of her being not to get up and try to help him. She kept reminding herself that Paige was there, and she was helping their troubled friend. Sleep was hard to come by, and when it came it was restless. At least Happy slept better than when she thought Walter was dead.

Toby winced at every scream. In the middle of the night, the terrifying noise would cut through the silence in the air. Each scream reminded him if his own screams. His conversation with Happy came from somewhere deeper then what he read in textbooks. Memories plaguing sleep, creating twisted nightmares. He knew what Walter was going through, and he wished he could make his friend stop suffering.

Sylvester wore earplugs to bed, but they were no match to Walters screams. Each time they woke him up, he would pull the blankets over his head and squeeze his eyes shut. He wanted to help Walter, but knew he couldn't. He didn't have Paige's gift, the one that allowed her to get along with people so well. He didn't know anything about helping people with their issues. Not these issues.

One morning, Cabe walked in to see the team talking in the kitchen. He walked over, inviting himself into the conversation. "-serious. Walter needs help. He wakes up screaming every night, don't even try to lie. We all wake up when he screams. He's only getting worse." Happy was saying. The others nodded.

"Well who can help him? I know Paige calms him down, but she isn't always gonna be around for that. We need to help him get past this. He has emotions, he just can't process them well. He still feels things. He's still terrified about what happened, and that isn't something that just goes away." Toby said. Something flashed through his eyes, but it was too quick for anyone to tell what it was. Happy still saw it though.

"Hey, can I talk to you for a sec?" She asked Toby, gesturing to the door. With a confused nod, he followed her outside. They walked across the street to where Cabe and Paige had their cars parked. Happy slowed, the turned around and looked up, staring Toby in the eye. "The other day in the car, you sounded like you were speaking from experience." She stated. At that comment, Toby diverted his eyes, looking to the side. Happy sidestepped, looking back into his eyes. "Toby." She said firmly, yet her eyes held some softness.

"My past hasn't been the best. I know what Walter is feeling. I hate to see him going through this." He admitted. Happy sighed, her face softening some. Hesitantly, she placed her hand on his shoulder.

"You should talk with him. Maybe you can help him get past this." Happy told him. Toby looked at her hesitantly.

"I'm not sure thats the best idea." He told her, rubbing the back of his neck. "I might end up making it worse." He claimed. Happy shook her head.

"Sylvester doesn't know how to help people. Cabe can't help him without thinking of his daughter. Paige can keep him calm, but she can't relate. I would be too hard on him, making things worse. You can relate, and you know how to go easy on people." She told him. "None of us like seeing him like this. You can help, Toby." A silence began, and Toby stared at Happy's face. She looked stressed, again. He couldn't let his team, or Walter, go on like this.

"Alright." He agreed, earning him a small smile from Happy. The two went back inside, and Toby headed upstairs. Happy went to inform the group that Toby was going to talk with Walter.

Opening the door, Toby quietly walked into the room. Walter was writing equations in a notebook. He looked up with a tired smile. "Hey Toby." Toby gave a tight smile and a nod, sitting down on the desk chair in the corner of the small room.

"Walter. We need to talk."


	18. Chapter 18

A/N: *hides from the people with pitchforks and torches* Heeeey. Sorry about not updating yesterday, I wasn't home. Also I really struggled with this chapter. It's really awkward, given its a conversation between two low EQ people. This is basically how I image a heart-to-heart between Toby ans Walter would go. So yeah, terrible chapter. Some Paige/Walter fluff at the end. R&amp;R and Enjoy :)

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"Toby." Walter said warningly. He didn't want to talk with the shrink about his problems. "I don't need your help." He knew that was a lie as soon as he said it. Across the small room, Toby shook his head.

"Walter, you need help. You're not the only one who wakes up in the middle of the night. When you scream, it wakes all of us up. Paige won't even bring Ralph over anymore because she's afraid you'll have an episode while he's here." Toby takes his voice slightly. The comment surprised Walter, and he slumped against the wall behind his bed.

"I may or may not be having some trouble with what happened." Walter admitted. Toby nodded, standing up and turning the chair so he was sitting in it backwards.

"What are the nightmares about?" Toby asked. Walter looked at him wide eyed.

"Wha- I, um- uh-" Walter studdered. Toby gave his friend a knowing look. With a sigh of defeat, Walter gave in. "The torture." He admitted. Toby nodded, looking at the floor for a second.

"What happened during the torture? What did he do?" Walter didn't even have to think. His photographic memory held a picture of every weapon, and he remembered every twinge of pain.

"They would always hang me from the ceiling, by chains. When I wasn't being tortured, they used handcuffs so I couldn't get away." Toby gave a nod at his friends discription. "He had this wire, it was long. He used it like a whip. Then there was a car battery, he had live wires connected to it. He used those to shock me. Then sometimes they'd just punch or kick me, or they would target old injuries." Walter finished. His hand went to his side, tracing a fresh scar through his shirt. His injures were mostly healed, thanks to modern medicine.

"Do you relive the torture?" Toby asked. Walter nodded slowly. "Okay, how does Paige help you?" Walter perked up slightly at the name.

"Paige? Oh um- uh. She, she's peaceful. She's nice, the complete opposite of Stogan. She takes my mind off of everything." Toby nodded, noticing that Walter kept touching his side.

"Yours scars, they bother you, don't they?" Toby said. Walter nodded with a wince. "That's natural. It's like a cruel joke. You see your scars, then you remember how you got them." Walter nodded again. "Walter. You need to focus on something good. The nightmare a will never go away, but they can take a back seat to something else. I should know. I have scars from my past, and every time I see them, I remember everything. It's terrible, but it will start to go away. I promise." Toby said. Then he sighed, puffing out his cheeks. "Do you mind if I bring Happy and Paige up here?" Toby asked. Walter nodded. The girls were called upstairs, leaving Cabe and Sylvester downstairs.

"Did you need us?" Paige asked, walking into the room with Happy. Toby gestured for them to sit down. Happy stood next to Toby, and Paige sat next to Walter.

"Well. After what you told me Walter, I think you should talk with Paige. She helps you." Getting up, Toby nodded to Happy. "Let's let them talk." The two left the room as quickly as Paige and Happy had come in, leaving Paige and Walter alone.

"So, um, why did Toby bring me in here?" Paige asked.

"Im not exactly sure. I mean, he's Toby..." Walter said, making Paige laugh a little. It was the first time anyone had laughed since Walter's nightmares began. The tension in the air lifted slightly, until Paige suddenly turned more serious.

"Walter..." Said man turned to look at her. Carefully, Paige asked her question, sure that Walter would shut down. "Can I, see your scars?" Surprisingly, Walter unbuttoned his shirt and shrugged it off. He stared uncomfortably at the floor as Paige gently ran her fingers over the tinted pink lines of fresh scar tissue. "He isn't going to hurt you again you know. Reed and his gang are all in prison, for life." She told him. He shook his head.

"It's not what could happen that bothers me. It's what happened." Walter explained, exhaustion clear in his slumped posture. Paige nodded, taking in how tired Walter looked. Gently grabbed his shoulders, she pulled him down on the bed. He looked at her confused, but she just smiled.

"Get some rest. I'll be here the whole time." She promised. Nodding, Walter shifted slightly and closed his eyes. Paige moved her arm so it rested on his shoulder, allowing her to reach his head. Slowly, she ran her fingers through his knotted curls. The pair fell asleep like that soon after.


	19. Chapter 19

A/N: Chapter 19. I think this is about it. I put in some fluff here and there with Happy/Toby and Walter/Paige. I don't want to draw this out to an extreme length, because that would be terrible. I'll put up an epilouge with an overview of Walter putting all of this stuff behind him and some more team stuff/fluff. R&amp;R, if you have any prompts that you can't do or don't want to do, I would love to hear them. I don't have any idea's for another story, which I might do some time. Anyways, Enjoy :)

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"Do you think they talked?" Happy asked, looking up the stairs.

"I don't know. Paige has been in there for an hour. Maybe you should go make sure there isn't a problem." Toby suggested. Happy smacked him on the back of the head, then pushed him toward the stairs. The pair jogged up to the second floor, then walked quietly to Walter's room. Grabbing the handle, Happy slowly pushed open the door and peeked inside, Toby looking over her head. In the room, Walter and Paige lay asleep on the bed, close together. With small smiles, Happy and Toby backed away from the door. Shutting it, they quietly made their way down the stairs. Happy was totally unaware thay Toby had snapped pictures of Walter and Paige, which was good considering she would kill Toby if she found out. Cabe and Sylvester met them at the bottom of the stairs.

"Are they okay?" Cabe asked. They nodded, and Happy walked past him. Toby secretly pulled out his phone and showed the pictures to Cabe, who had a small smile tugging at his lips.

"Sooooo. What now?" Sylvester asked. Today, their whole mission was to work on getting rid of Walter's nightmares. It seemed that Paige had that under control, leaving the rest of the team with nothing to do. Happy grabbed a few tools off her desk.

"I'm gonna go work on my bike." She disappeared into the garage. Toby sat down at his desk and cracked open a book. Sylvester awkwardly looked around before turning to his chalkboard and writing a bunch of complex equations. That left Cabe standing in the middle of the living room, extremely uncomfortable.

"I'm just...leaving now..." He said slowly, before quickly walking out the door.

A few hours later, Paige woke up. She was confused at the heat against her head for a second, until she looked up and saw Walter. She had her face burrowed into his chest, and her arm had slipped down so it was around his neck. Her face heated up as she fully realized that she was cuddling her boss. Carefully, she moved her head so she could look up at his face. He looked so peaceful in his sleep. His face wasn't strained with stress, and his mouth was curved into a ghost of a smile. She could have watched him forever, but he soon stirred.

Walter blinked the fuzziness out of his eyes before looking down at the warm thing next to him. Paige lay cuddled up against him, staring at him with light colored orbs.

"How do you feel?" She asked him. He smiled a little, a blush heating up his face.

"Better." Reluctantly, Walter pulled away from Paige and sat up. His face went scarlet when he realized he wasn't wearing a shirt. Getting up, he quickly walked to the closet to find another shirt. Paige came up behind him, tracing his scars again. He shivered lightly as her cool finger ran across his back, then his side, then down his back. Sticking his hands through the sleeves, he shrugged his shirt on and buttoned it quickly. "We should go downstairs." He told Paige. She nodded, reaching up to mess up his hair. Walter scowled, but there was no heat behind it. "I need to cut that." He announced, walking toward the door. Paige followed him out.

"You should keep it. It's cute." As soon as she realized what she said, Paige blushed and looked at the ground, not realizing Walter was doing the same thing.

When they reached the bottom of the stairs, the pair found the rest of the team, minus Cabe, gathered in the living room. Sylvester gave a small nod, and Happy and Toby smiled evily. "Walter? Are you blushing?" Happy accused. Walter just blushed a deeper color, now knowing that his friend had seen him cuddled up with Paige. "You know Walter, Paige sure brings out the EQ in you. Better be careful, we don't want Sylvester hearing you two through the walls." At this point Toby voice squeaked as he held back laughter. On the couch, Sylvester decided to play his own game.

"Your one to talk Toby. Don't pretend you and Happy weren't making out in the garage earlier. I could hear you from in HERE!" The mathematician complained. Toby's face turned scarlet, and he walked with an embarrassed Happy out to the garage. Sylvester turned to Walter. "You doing better?" He asked sincerely. Walter gave him a smile and nodded.

"Much." Sylvester smiled and nodded, turning his attention back to his notebook before stopping.

"Toby was right about Paige helping you. Also, I really don't want to hear you through the walls. Besides, do you know how many diseases you could get from-" Sylvester cut off, too embarrassed to say the word.

"You won't have to worry about that buddy. Happy and Toby maybe." He joked. Paige, who was standing in the corner, had a smile on her face. Despite everything that happened, Walter was turning back to his old self. Possibly even one with a little more EQ. She couldn't be happier.


	20. Epilogue

A/N: Epilogue. Extremely short, but just something to wrap it up. Thanks to everyone who followed favorites and reviewed. Enjoy this little wrap up, and don't forget to any prompts you want to see. If I have time, I'd love to write them.

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Walter got better. Paige stayed with him at night a few times, and his nightmares went away. Paige wouldn't leave his side when he struggled, when his memories came out to play. She was protective of him, and constantly scolded him for doing dangerous things.

Meanwhile, Toby and Happy's relationship developed. They grew closer, but down do anything that would interfere with the job. The team was doing great. Cabe and Walter grew close, like father and son. So did Walter and Ralph.

Sylvester observed his team from a bit of a distance. He was stil part of the team, and had a close brotherly relationship with all of them. He couldn't be happier. Walter's EQ was improving, and he was getting into a relationship with Paige. Happy and Toby acted like themselves, despite the fact that they were now in a relationship. Cabe and Walter were closer, Ralph and Walter were closer, everyone was getting closer. Of course he wasn't jealous. He didn't want a relationship, and most of the team were like siblings to him. Ralph was more like a nephew, and Cabe was more like and uncle.

No one on the team noticed Sylvester's small smiles, but that didn't change anything. The team was happy again.


End file.
